I googled spur removal, there's all kinds of YouTube videos and advice. One of the more interesting methods was using hot baked potatoes. You stick them on the spurs, leave them for 10 minutes, and the spurs come off, no blood. Ewww.

Rocky is there just for protection and, um, recreation, right? Not necessary? Hope your interventions work, CW, but he sounds pretty dangerous.

I have a general understanding of chickens and egg laying. After all they teach all the basic concepts in school. Not having raised chickens, I don't have a practical concept of raising them for egg production...

Just how much interaction do the hens need with a rooster to continue egg laying? Or do they just lay infertile eggs if no rooster is involved? Does the presence of a rooster increase egg laying? (They could interact behaviorally or by pheromones without actually needing um, recreation.)

It seems to me that if you wanted only infertile eggs and if the rooster isn't necessary for that then might be better off not having him around. I suspect there must be some benefit to having one.

I'd like to give a try at raising chickens for egg production some day, just enough for the household. Maybe even raise some for food although I'd have to try that to see if slaughtering them sits well with me. Probably makes no difference as I'm pretty sure I won't ever have enough yard and proper zoning to do it. But everybody has a dream, right?

I have a general understanding of chickens and egg laying. After all they teach all the basic concepts in school. Not having raised chickens, I don't have a practical concept of raising them for egg production...

Just how much interaction do the hens need with a rooster to continue egg laying? Or do they just lay infertile eggs if no rooster is involved? Does the presence of a rooster increase egg laying? (They could interact behaviorally or by pheromones without actually needing um, recreation.)

It seems to me that if you wanted only infertile eggs and if the rooster isn't necessary for that then might be better off not having him around. I suspect there must be some benefit to having one.

I'd like to give a try at raising chickens for egg production some day, just enough for the household. Maybe even raise some for food although I'd have to try that to see if slaughtering them sits well with me. Probably makes no difference as I'm pretty sure I won't ever have enough yard and proper zoning to do it. But everybody has a dream, right?

Roos alert the hens re: having found food (so the hunter for food is the rooster, the gatherers are the hens ). Roos also make sure that everyone goes back into the coop at night. In addition, Roos are supposed to defend the flock re: predators. We got the rooster for that reason--to protect/defend the flock since they would be free roaming. I'm having a problem with chopping his head off--he is a very handsome bird. I am also having a problem with all the marks on my body...and the pain associated with the puncture in my arm. I will modify my attire and behaviour, but, if that doesn't fix Mr. Cocky Rocky's attitude, he's going in the stew pot or maybe I can trade him for two ducks and my friend with chickens will put him in his stew pot.

Well I don't really want to be woke up in the morning, although unfortunately I wake up often before dawn and no roo necessary. I like to think that if I ever slept past dawn it would be nice to wake up without needing to listen to cock-a-doodle roo! :)

I've enjoyed reading your posts and vicariously living my life of a chicken raiser with no chickens.

I googled spur removal, there's all kinds of YouTube videos and advice. One of the more interesting methods was using hot baked potatoes. You stick them on the spurs, leave them for 10 minutes, and the spurs come off, no blood. Ewww.

Rocky is there just for protection and, um, recreation, right? Not necessary? Hope your interventions work, CW, but he sounds pretty dangerous.

I googled this as well, Dawgluver, after seeing this post. I think we'll give spur removal a try this weekend. Obviously, it will work better if there are two of us. If there would be a third person, we could take pics! A lot easier, emotionally, than sending him to freezer camp. The "war wound" is much better today. Not nearly as painful or "angry" (red) as my friend the vet would say. Up until now, having chickens was so much fun.

And, Silly Milly has been hiding her eggs in the loft (where the lumber from the sawmill is air dried). Of course her latest clutch is behind a 6 ft x 12 ft pile of oak boards that is parked close to the eaves. I sprained my toe a couple of weeks ago and could not assume the yoga egg clutch gathering position (hurt my toe to do so). Another activity that requires two people--one who is agile enough to dangle off the pile of lumber and retrieve the eggs, the other who can receive the eggs from the agile person because the ladder to the loft is a roofing ladder and I know I would not be able to descend said ladder holding a clutch of 18 eggs. These will be dog eggs, not fit for human consumption. It is hot in the loft...or, maybe they will be used to deter deer from the corn patch. Silly Milly will learn that at the house in the City, there isn't a loft and she'll be forced to lay her eggs in the nest box (where she should have been laying them all along). Gotcha!

I googled this as well, Dawgluver, after seeing this post. I think we'll give spur removal a try this weekend. Obviously, it will work better if there are two of us. If there would be a third person, we could take pics! A lot easier, emotionally, than sending him to freezer camp. The "war wound" is much better today. Not nearly as painful or "angry" (red) as my friend the vet would say.

I'm glad to read that the wound is getting better and that you will be doing something serious about not getting more of them.

How long do you need to keep taking the antibiotics?

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May you live as long as you wish and love as long as you live.
Robert A. Heinlein

We had Mallard ducks when we lived in Texas. I let the mother duck build a nest. When her babies hatched, Daddy Duck was right there along with Mama Duck to protect them. Then one day we saw a Water Moccasin slithering away with a big lump in him. We went to count the duckies. Daddy Duck was missing. I would like to think he died protecting his family. We gave the rest of them to friends who had a farm and a large pond for them. They turned into a very large flock. Our friend was able to get another male Mallard.

I got my revenge a few months later. Along with the woman across the street, we killed two Water Moccasins in one day. I just know one of them was the culprit.

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Illegitimi non carborundum!
I don't want my last words to be, "I wish I had spent more time doing housework"